My grandmother cut a recipe sometime in the 1940s or 1950s for "Mrs. Orr's Chocolate Cake" from the Monitor. When my dad tasted this cake, he was so enchanted with it that he requested this cake every year, both for Father's Day and for his birthday in September. Dad was a creature of habit. He didn't always greet new experiments in cooking with glee. When I graduated from college and got my first apartment, I began to learn to cook, with guidance and suggestions from my mom and the help of a few good cookbooks. I also began to experiment. Often when I invited Mom and Dad over for dinner, I tried a new recipe. Dad would look at his plate suspiciously and ask, "Am I the 'guinea pig' for this meal?" Dad especially didn't encourage experimentation where his birthday cake was concerned. It had to be Mrs. Orr's cake, made in a metal 9-by-13-inch pan, rather than in layers, and it had to have white butter cream icing, not the traditional chocolate icing that many people enjoy on chocolate cake. Once we asked if he would like chocolate icing for a change. Silly question. So we enjoyed Mrs. Orr's cake with white icing twice a year. Nothing fancy, nothing pretentious—just like Dad. No nuts, coconut, sprinkles, or other decorations. No pretty cake plate or beautiful presentation. Just plain cake with icing in a plain metal pan. Somehow, it seemed to fit Dad, a plain, no-nonsense kind of man with Midwestern down-home friendliness. Dad was very generous in sharing his special cake with family and friends. When my sister and I were no longer living at home, we'd still get together for Father's Day and Dad's birthday. He always cut generous pieces for us to take home. When a neighbor came over for morning coffee, Dad always offered him a piece of cake, commenting with awe that either his wife or daughters had made him this cake, and how much they must love him for going to "all that work"—a comment not so meaningful as it would have been if we'd made him a layer cake and decorated it. Of course, we asked repeatedly if he'd rather have a different cake, maybe decorated. Again, silly question. For some reason that no one understands, this cake always rises higher in the middle than a normal cake, sometimes looking rather lopsided. It doesn't seem to matter which kind of pan we use, or which type of chocolate. That means the corners and sides of the cake get more icing than the center. Personally, I always like a corner piece. So did Dad. Years ago, my cousin told me she makes Mrs. Orr's cake as a layer cake and uses chocolate icing. I tried it when I was having company(not Dad), using raspberry jam between two layers and a chocolate butter cream icing on the top and sides. The sides looked too messy for company, so I pressed chopped nuts into them, piped the chocolate icing around the bottom and top, and everyone thought I bought it at a bakery. It was amazingly rich and wonderful, hence the name I gave it, Majestic Chocolate Cake. The funny thing, though, is that I missed the white icing! Dad isn't with us anymore, but whenever I see this recipe in my file, I'm filled with sweet memories of the man who loved his special cake, appreciated those who'd baked it, and shared it so freely.
单选题 According to the passage, ______may NOT be the character of the author's father.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】解析:推理题. 第四段作者将父亲与朴实无华的蛋糕相比,说明了父亲的务实,可排除[B]。在第三、五两段末,均出现了silly question,其点明了保守固执不愿意改变的性格,排除[C]。第五段开头,generous一词说明父亲的慷慨大方,所以[D]也不符合题意。而[A]“苛求的”在文中未有体现,故选[A]。
单选题 What can NOT be inferred from the last but one paragraph?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】解析:细节题. 本段描述作者尝试制作新蛋糕,并得到了大家的赞赏(蛋糕就像店里买到的一样),所以作者的厨艺足以和专业的厨师媲美,排除[D]。而末句中的though使句意发生了转折一一虽然新蛋糕很精美,但是我还是想念原来的蛋糕。其中missed含义应为“思念,想念”而不应理解为“错过”;white icing应指代原来父亲爱吃的蛋糕,所以并非指作者忘记了加入白色的蛋糕糖衣,故答案为[A],同时排除[C]。本段第三句讲到作者认为蛋糕的边缘过于凌乱不宜招待客人而进行了进一步加工,体现了作者考虑周到,故也排除[B]。
单选题 Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】解析:主旨题。本文作者讲述了“一块难以改变的蛋糕”维系了奶奶、父亲、母亲以及作者三代人之间感情的故事,表达了对父亲的怀念,而[B]中的stubborn一词也暗指父亲性格,所以[B]正确。本文不是讲述一个厨师的生平,排除[A]。虽然文章中也对父亲的顽固大力着墨,但文章并非为了突出父亲这一性格特点,本文主要是展示几代人之间因为蛋糕而产生的感情,故[C]不全面、不准确。[D]“我提升了的厨艺”只是文章描述的一小部分,不能概括全文内容,也排除。